Black tea consumption may reduce risk of Parkinson's disease

March 22, 2008

Black Tea Consumption May Reduce the Risk of Parkinson's Disease

Keywords: PARKINSON'S DISEASE - Black Tea, Caffeine, Polyphenols,

Antioxidants, Green Tea, Oolong Tea

" Differential effects of black versus green tea on risk of Parkinson's

disease in the Singapore Chinese Health Study, " Tan LC, Koh WP, et al,

Am J Epidemiol, 2008; 167(5): 553-60. (Address: Dr. Woon-Puay Koh,

Department of Community, Occupational and Family Medicine, Yong Loo

Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, MD3, 16

Medical Drive, Singapore 117597, Singapore. E-mail: cofkwp@... ).

In a prospective cohort study involving 63,257 Chinese men and women,

consumption of black tea was found to be inversely associated with

risk of Parkinson's disease. Between 1993 and 2005, 157 incident cases

of Parkinson's disease were identified. Data gathered through

in-person interviews using structured questionnaires found that

smoking, caffeine intake, and black tea intake were each independently

inversely associated with Parkinson's disease risk. Current smokers

were found to have a reduced risk of Parkinson's disease (RR=0.29), as

compared to never smokers. Subjects in the highest quartile of

caffeine intake were found to have a reduced risk of Parkinson's

disease (RR=0.59), as compared to subjects in the lowest quartile.

Subjects in the highest quartile of black tea intake had a reduced

adjusted relative risk of Parkinson's disease (RR=0.29), not

confounded by total caffeine intake or tobacco smoking, as compared to

subjects in the lowest quartile. Drinking approximately 23 cups of

black tea per month was found to reduce the risk of Parkinson's

disease by 71%. Meanwhile, no significant association was found

between green tea intake and Parkinson's disease risk. The authors

conclude, " Ingredients of black tea other than caffeine appear to be

responsible for the beverage's inverse association with Parkinson's

disease. " Additional research is warranted.

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